Absence
by Thoronmage
Summary: Robin had been gone for four years, having sacrificed herself for the future. It was a painfully long time not talking about her, but her husband knew that the day would come where both present and future versions of their son would dig up old memories, both good and bad... And Frederick knows that he can't hide from them forever.
1. Painful reminders

**So... I needed a small break from writing things in the romance genre, and I've had this in mind for quite a while now! Cute little father-son interactions between Frederick and two different aged Morgans in the absence of Robin! Hopefully it is good enough!**

* * *

He was six years old, and gods, was he as inquisitive as his mother. If he wasn't asking a question about one thing, he would be reading about this, that and the other in order to answer his own questions. The child even read in a similar way to her, by candle-light late at night, even when told that he should sleep, or when sat out in the open. More often than not, he fell asleep reading too. It was painful beyond belief for his father for these reminders, aware that the boy's mother, _his wife_ … may possibly never return.

Robin had been absent from Morgan's life for four years, having gone and protected Chrom from a potentially fatal attack from Grima, in turn removing Grima from existence permanently. It had been a shock to everyone, and had left them all with a huge hole in their lives. The exalt without his best friend, adviser, tactician. The princess without someone to confide in, or to prank when feeling down. The knight without someone to assist him in his duties, someone to relax with, and also to train alongside, not to mention caring for their son. After all… She was the knight's beloved, having been married for three years by the time of her sacrifice.

Frederick could barely cope initially, trying to find a way to balance his duties as a knight and as a father. Normally, in the first two years of their son's life, Robin would have been the one who Morgan would cry for, crawl to, or clumsily toddle over to. He would only really go to his father when he couldn't find his mother, or if they were spending time together whilst Robin was occupied with things such as strategising or spending time with her friends at the Ylisstol markets. It was funny, really, considering that Morgan was almost the exact opposite to Chrom's young daughter. Mother's boy, father's girl. Morgan was eager to get his nose in a book, Lucina would swing a wooden sword around giggling.

And thinking about those differences _hurt,_ particularly when reminiscing about the past.

"Father! Hey, father, look at this!" Morgan's shouting for Frederick induced a sigh. This had been the fourth or fifth time in a matter of minutes in which the boy had called out for his father to look at him, due to him searching around in particular belongings which had been boxed away for quite a while. "This is so warm, but it's so big!" He giggled, clambering up onto the bed beside him.

And when Frederick turned to look at him, his eyes grew wide. "Take it off."

Morgan folded his arms with a 'hmph'. "I don't want to..."

"I said _take it off, Morgan."_

He was wearing the one thing which he had kept hidden away in order to push his memories to the back of his mind… Robin's coat. It reminded him of the most horrible and painful moments of his life….

* * *

" _Grr… You cannot defeat me! I am **the** fell dragon! I am **a GOD!** "_

 _The exalt and the tactician exchanged glances before their attention was fully focussed upon the woman before them. Further back, the members of the Shepherds were keeping the risen which Grima was constantly summoning away from the duo, in an attempt to allow them to send Grima into a long slumber, just as planned. Robin was scared of death, so she had promised to allow Chrom the final strike._

" _This is it… Everything we have done has prepared us for this moment… Are you ready for a future of peace, which we have fought for? Are you ready to give our children an era of happiness, not a world full of troubles?"_

" _I'm more ready than I ever have been, Chrom, did you really need to ask? I can't wait to get rid of this burden held by my bloodline… Free Morgan from any such fate too..."_

" _Cover me whilst I go for the final strike then… I don't want to be cut down at the last moment, do I?"_

" _Hah, yeah..." Robin tightened her grasp of her tome then, her heart pounding wildly through the fear and excitement coursing through her body. She straightened her face as Chrom went to attack Grima one final time, keeping her position as she kept an eye out for any risen which dared slip past the others._

 _Her concentration was broken by her arm suddenly being grabbed by one of the risen though, the cold grasp enough to send her arm numb. "Wah!" She tossed her tome down then, and pulled out her sword from her coat quickly, before swiping at it quickly. She was thankfully released then, and glanced around._

 _Everyone was beginning to be overpowered by the risen… They were going straight for her and Chrom._

 _And then she looked at Chrom in a panic, and her instincts took over when she noticed that Grima was secretly pulling out a tome to attack the exalt with at the last moment._

" _Watch out! She's going to kill you, Chrom!" Robin shouted out as she ran closer_ _to her friend, which in turn made the fell dragon speed up and whip out her tome._

 _Chrom's eyes grew wide then, seeing the new weapon, before stepping back in shock. That was when Robin stood in front of him with her own tome, which she had ended up recovering. "Change of plan..." She gulped, before she threw a blast of electricity at Grima, striking her dead on. "I'm s- so sorry… But Ylisse needs their exalt. If it means sacrificing my life then… So be it!"_

 _The tactician's shout was heard by everyone, including Frederick. Giving no regard to his life or the battle, he dropped his weapon at Robin's words. Morgan, the_ _person_ _he was fighting alongside, also panicked at those words. "F- Father, I'm going to mother! M- Maybe I can stop her!"_

" _R- Robin..." Frederick's eyes then narrowed, and nodded at what the teenager had said,_ _whilst running alongside him to her._

 _When they got to her though, it was too late. Purple smoke was billowing from the woman's body, and she was crying. Chrom was unsuccessfully trying to keep her calm, and seemingly, he was making her terror worse. The sight of her husband and future son was able to make her smile through her suffering though._

 _Quickly, her arms flew around his neck_ _when he was close enough to her, and she began to cry even more. "I- I know… I promised… I promised that I would be coming home with you tonight… But it was either my life or Chrom's… Y- You can't blame me for that, right?..." She then laughed quietly, before kissing him quickly. "But… Hold onto some hope, okay?… I may still be able to return, if my bonds with everyone are strong enough…"_

 _Frederick was too shocked to make out any words. Never before had he ever felt so much pain. As though he had failed not just as a knight, but also as a husband. She was practically_ _ **dying in his arms!**_

" _We'll meet again in a better place… That's a promise that I will keep, okay?..."_

 _At the side, both Chrom and Morgan were looking on in shock. Robin was sounding so scared, yet she was trying to reassure the one person who she loved more than anything that this wasn't the end. Within seconds, Morgan flew at his parents crying too. That was enough to even send Frederick into tears. Nobody had ever seen that happen before…_

 _The reality of the situation sunk in moments later though, when Morgan and Frederick could no longer feel Robin in their arms… But a single piece of clothing._

 _The coat which she had been wearing._

* * *

"B- But-"

"Please, take it off. I don't want to say it again..." With that, the young Morgan jumped down of the bed, tears welling up in his eyes. And then he ran as fast as he possibly could out of the room. Frederick was absolutely fine with his son messing about with things such as little souvenirs and trinkets which Robin had managed to build up a collection of, but wearing her coat was territory which he wished not to venture into again.

Sighing, the knight stood up and went to put everything which Morgan had pulled out back into the boxes… At least until a voice rang out in his head, with something that he hadn't heard in years… ' _Gods, you silly thing! Remember, Morgan is only a child, he needs_ _ **some**_ _leeway, okay? Go and see if he's okay!'_ Robin had said that to him about two, possibly three months before she had sacrificed herself. Their son had accidentally bumped into a table and had knocked a cup off it, and he had got a bit annoyed at the fact that he had to clean the mess up.

 _How had he forgotten that?… He needed to see if Morgan was okay. Not tidy up after him._

"Oof-!" Morgan was quick to end up running into someone whilst trying to get away from Frederick, and the person was confused as to who had bumped into her until she noticed the familiar dark brown hair and the coat. "Morgan? Hey there… What's the matter?"

"L- Lissa!" Morgan looked up with tears still welling up in his eyes as he noticed the Ylissean princess stood in front of him, before she crouched down to ruffle his hair. He could trust her, aware that Lissa _was_ one of his mother's closest friends. "F- Father is being mean..."

She tilted her head in confusion, before she smiled at him. "How come? You can tell me, right?"

"H- He shouted at me for wearing this..." Morgan held up his arms, in order to show her the coat. Lissa was quick to recognise the patch upon the arm where the risen had ended up grabbing hold of Robin, as she had seen it when Frederick had broke down after the final battle against Grima, and she frowned.

She then pointed at a doorway to the castle gardens, before she gestured for him to go outside with her. He was confused, but never questioned it. When outside, Lissa pointed to a small patch of flowers. "You see those flowers?"

"Yeah… B- But I don't get why you're pointing at them..."

"Did your father not tell you?"

"No..."

Lissa then put on a soft smile, before walking over to the flowers with Morgan. She then knocked a tiny bit of moss off a stone which was there… It was almost like a gravestone. "The reason why your father didn't want you wearing your coat is explained on there… Can you read it?"

The child knelt down in front of the flowers, before leaning forward to read. "Yes, I can read it..."

"What does it say then?..."

"In memory of Robin… Wait, that was mother's name!" Morgan smiled as he thought about his mother, before continuing. "Who… gave up her life for everyone's future… What does that mean, Lissa?" The wording confused him a slight bit, and so he was confused about what it meant.

"It means… Your mother… She might be dead. Maybe she can come back… but we don't know yet." Morgan then felt himself be picked up by a pair of arms which were quite evidently not Lissa's. "She was wearing this coat when she disappeared. I feel like crying when I see it, that's why I told you to take it off… I didn't mean to sound angry at you, okay?"

Morgan then felt himself be perched upon Frederick's shoulders, and he noticed that he was starting to tear up. _He had never seen his father cry before._ "Should I take it off then?" If the coat was upsetting him, he didn't want to keep it on. Knowing that his mother practically died wearing that coat made the entire situation much more understandable to him.

"… No. You should keep it and wear it, Morgan… Maybe you will grow into it when you're older, and you can have a reminder of your mother that you can wear every day..."

Lissa then took that moment to throw in her five cents to the current conversation. "Yay, and so, father and son are happy again! Robin would be proud of you both, I bet!" She then grinned at the two, before looking behind her. "I'll leave you two alone then, give you both a chance to make up properly! Anyway… I can't leave Owain alone for much longer, I don't think his father can take his silly antics for long!"

And so, the duo were left alone, with Frederick silently looking at the ground before him, and Morgan leaning on Frederick's head, taking in the comforting scent of apples which the coat seemed to have embedded within its fibres. The quiet gave them both a while to calm themselves down, and allow them to start to think straight about what had been going on. After some time had passed, Morgan finally broke the silence. "I love you, father… And I love mother too..." Even though the boy couldn't see his father's face and had the lack of any sort of verbal response, he knew that Frederick had put on a smile when he had said that. "And mother loves us both, doesn't she?..."

"… Yes. She does… No matter where she is now… I know that she does."

Then, Morgan began to start fidgeting, making Frederick crouch down so that he could clamber back down onto the ground. However, Morgan requested that Frederick stayed there for a moment. Seconds later, the boy laughed as he put Robin's coat over his father's shoulders. "There! And now mother is with you… You miss her more than me, so you need her with you immediately!"

That then set off Frederick laughing, and he stood up, keeping the coat over his shoulders. "I tell you what… That box of your mother's things… Why don't I bring it out here? Seeming as you know about what happened to her now… I feel better about talking to you about her..."

Morgan sat down in front of the flowers and nodded, before he reached out and touched the stone with the engraved message. The whole time… He thought that the stone was just decoration… Not something dedicated to his mother's memory. "Yeah… Then we can share this memory with mother! She'll like that… won't she?"

"She would, yes. You know her well, Morgan..."

* * *

Morgan winced as Frederick had to tend to yet another cut which he had managed to gain when searching through the box, due to an excessive amount of broken seashells within it. "Stupid Chrom..." He mumbled, before yelping as Frederick wiped away the little bit of blood which was on this fresh cut. "D- Did he have to give mother all of these shells?!"

"Well, we were invited to an outrealm with a beach then, believe it or not, Morgan. And because your mother only had memories of fighting since we found her, Chrom wanted to give her a gift to let her have a happy memory. The shells are what happen to be left of a necklace which he had attempted to make..." Frederick then got Morgan to hold a damp cloth on his hand for a few minutes, whilst he quickly pulled out the last few pieces of shell from the box to prevent further injuries. "Don't get me started upon when we were invited to a hot spring outrealm though… Your mother managed to get these… And it had to specifically be these."

Frederick quickly pulled out three wooden figures from the box then, and held them out for Morgan to see. "Ah! Father, it's a little wooden you! And is that mother?! She looks funny made out of wood!" The final figure confused the boy though, and he leaned in squinting as he tried to figure out who it was. The person had the same outfit as Robin, but he wasn't sure as to who it could have been. He didn't know anyone who wore the same thing as her. "Father?..."

"That… Is an older version of you, and was extremely happy when she saw it. A little Morgan to go with a little Robin and a little Frederick."

That made the boy burst out laughing, before taking them off Frederick. "I want to look after little wooden us! Do you think that mother would mind?"

As he child said that though, someone walked outside, and upon the sight of Frederick and Morgan sat there, they quickly tried to jump back inside without being seen. Unfortunately Frederick coughed loudly in order to let them know that they had been seen. "If you wished to see her… You don't have to wait for us to leave. You have just as much the right to see her as us."

"Ah, gods… Was I really that obvious, fa- I- I mean… F- Frederick?..."

Oh, Frederick knew who the man was almost instantly upon the name stumbling. One of the very few of the future children who frequently traversed to the castle, holding their new identities as they lived in the present day. "Yes. You were. How else do you expect me to carry out my duties without a keen eye?" Frederick laughed, just as the young Morgan jumped up and grabbed the man's wrist.

"Hey, you are here to see my mother, right?!"

"Yeah, I am."

"Then why don't you sit with me and father then?! You obviously know mother so you can tell me stories about her too!" Little did the boy know that he was literally talking to himself then, having never been told about the time travel incidents which had occurred in the past. "Come on, I'm sure mother wouldn't mind there being three of us either!"

"Uh..." The older Morgan paused for a moment, before casting a worried glance at Frederick. The nod which he was given relaxed him though, so he then nodded to the six-year-old. "Okay then, I can tell you a story or two about her..."

Seeing his younger self so happy when it came to talking about Robin made him feel so happy, as he wasn't suffering due to Grima, such as his other future allies had done. And on top of that… The pain of seeing Robin fade from existence was dulled, knowing that her memory still lived on through this enthusiastic child.

The two Morgans sat down, before the younger one suddenly started asking questions, proving that he was still ever-inquisitive. One question caught Frederick and the older Morgan by surprise though. "What's your name?..." They hadn't been expecting that question being asked at all. The older two exchanged glances, but eventually, Frederick shook his head. The boy was too young to know about time travel actually being something that exists, let alone know that this new person was actually the older version of him.

"Well… I go by Marc. It's not my real name… But that is what I go by. Maybe in a few years I'll give you my proper name, but not now." He then looked down, and noticed the little wooden figures. That triggered a laugh as he picked them up, and looked at them closely. "You kept these?… Hah, R- Robin only got them because a certain woman that I know yelled 'tiny wooden father, here I come'.."

Morgan laughed as he grabbed hold of them then, before looking at the wooden figure which he was told happened to be reminiscent of Robin. "I really want to grow up like mother! I want to be able to… tacticise? Is that a word?… Be, um… Stractical?"

"Strategise and be tactical, do you mean?"

"Yeah! That's it! Haha- Oh! What's that?!" Morgan was quickly distracted when he then noticed a book which had his name scribbled on it in Robin's handwriting. "I'm going to read it! And then you can tell me stories about mother, M- M- whatever your name is!"

"… I'm so glad that he gets along with you… It makes me feel better about only having that one childhood memory of you, father..." The older Morgan quietly muttered, before laughing quietly. "Is he always like this?"

"Normally… He's like this around anyone _but_ me. I guess that letting him talk about Robin has given him the chance to open up to me a bit… And helped me open up to him more also. We've been close, but not as close as he was with her… Both of you are absolute mother's boys..."

* * *

 **Well, this is it for a first chapter! I've already got the second chapter in progress for this, so I hope that this is okay!**


	2. Her birthday

Morgan was highly confused, seeming as Frederick had actually been made to find some time to spend the day with him. Normally, the boy would only ever really be able to catch his father when he was taking a small break or when he was tired, and about to go to sleep. On top of that, Frederick had been smiling a lot. Earlier that day, he had even overheard Chrom saying that the last time that he had seen his father smile was when his mother was still with everyone!

The boy was also confused as to why Frederick had specifically chose that day to spend time with him, considering that it was the middle of winter! Worse yet, spending the time _outside in the snow!_ Morgan _despised_ the cold, for some reason. Yes, he was wrapped up warmly… but why specifically outside?

"Your mother wouldn't allow me to pout like that, Morgan, so I doubt that she would let you get away with it either..."

"But it's winter!"

"Do you… know the date, Morgan?" The blank look from the boy confirmed that he was completely unaware. "Today… Is the first day of the new year. And today… Is your mother's birthday. She would be twenty-seven today…" Frederick quietly chuckled, before ruffling his son's hair. "She didn't really like to celebrate it, but she always appreciated the company on the day… I'm sure that she would be happy that we're here, even if it is deathly cold."

Confusion turned into surprise then, and Morgan then grinned widely. He had an idea, and he had persuaded himself faster than he could blink that it was a good one. "We need to get mother a gift then! When she can come back, and when she does, we can actually give it to her!"

 _He was assured that she would return one day… It was the sort of optimism that everyone needed at times where things felt as though they were not going to change… It's almost like the cheerfulness which his older self brought to everyone when he was around… And the same went with his mother._

"You… do agree with me, don't you, father?..." Frederick's thoughts were quickly disturbed by Morgan tugging at his trousers, looking up at him worriedly. "When you go quiet you're normally angry…"

"What?… Is that true?"

"Yeah… Like the time where you didn't want me to wear mother's coat! You were quiet, before yelling at me to take it off..." The boy then pulled said coat around him tightly, trying to take in what was left of his mother's scent. He had wore it so much since he had been given permission, one of the signs that it had initially belonged to Robin had began to fade. "And many times before that… I don't like it when you are-!"

Frederick was quick to cut off his son from speaking, seeing tears welling up in the boy's eyes over the idea of him being angry. "Let us go and get her the best gift that we can. Though we may not be able to buy something today, with it being the start of a new year… It doesn't mean that you can't make her something, does it?"

And then, Morgan's eyes lit up. He _would_ make her something… Something which he was sure would bring a smile to his mother's face no matter what her mood happened to be. He was going to write a letter to her. It would give her stories all about what she had missed over the past few years, about games that he had played, places he had been… And quite obviously about how he and his father had finally began to get along better than they ever had done before. It was the _perfect_ gift for the absent Robin.

In an attempt to then get out of the cold, Morgan tugged once more at his father, before grinning widely. "Can you help me write something for her then!?"

* * *

"A letter to her… And he's getting Frederick to help! That's just adorable!" Lissa giggled from outside the room in which the father and son were, peering in alongside Chrom and the older Morgan. "And you know what… That reminds me of how we found out that today was Robin's birthday!"

Morgan paused for a moment, before he shook his head. "That couldn't have been when the risen stole the roster from under our noses… You all knew her birthday before then. So… How did you actually find out?"

"Easy… Lissa was drawing in Robin's strategy book, but found the roster after a… Well, 'catastrophic' ink spillage, as she put it." Chrom began, before Lissa finished off what he was saying.

"And I took the roster, and her details alongside Chrom's were on the first page! She _did_ snatch it back after… But that was after we found out that her birthday was the first of January!"

* * *

" _What did that silly princess do?!" Robin stressed, attempting to salvage what she could of her strategy book. Due to the time between the ink spillage and when the tactician had been told about the 'accident', much of the dark liquid had dried up, and the pages were just a vaguely damp cluster. "This was **not** just a 'little doodle'! This **had** to be intentional! Gah!" _

_Gods, was she frustrated. Was Lissa completely, **utterly** unaware of the strategy which could save the life of **her own sister** was in there, and now in ruins?! _

_One thing was definite though – Robin needed to get herself a new book for her strategies, and fast. Parchment on its own simply would not do, for if it were stolen, it would be much less noticeable than a book. And speaking of a book…_

" _Where in the gods name is the roster?! I need that to help with my strategies!"_

 _Almost in a fit of rage, Robin stormed out of her tent and looked around, disregarding anyone whom she shoved to the ground in the hunt for the Ylissean princess. Gaius dropped some of his candy into the sand; Ricken began to sulk when he bruised his knee; and Nowi almost turned into her manakete form in frustration to attack Robin, but was warned against it by Miriel, who found Robin's sudden anger an interesting field of study for the time being._

" _So… It seems to fill up with information about us by some unknown method?… That's strange..." Chrom muttered, looking at the book Lissa was eagerly wanting to flick through._

" _But is it not suspicious that Robin, and Robin alone is allowed to dare possess such an object? This could be proof that she is a Plegian spy of sorts-"_

" _ **Frederick!** That's **impossible!"** Chrom had too much trust in Robin to even consider Frederick's theory in the slightest. He knew that the knight was most definitely living up to the name 'Frederick the wary', but he also knew that Robin's amnesia was genuine, meaning that she couldn't possibly be an enemy within friendly ranks. Nobody would be capable of keeping up a façade such as that for almost a year, not even the best of actors."Anyway… Let's see that, Lissa." _

_The prince was quick to take the book from his sister, before opening it to the first page. It had **everything** that could hold any sort of relevance to both combat skills and recreational hobbies on the people on that page… Chrom was most definitely annoyed that it said that he was 'most likely to break things'… But Robin's information was much more interesting._

" _Hey… Have you seen this? This is interesting, this entry..." Lissa and Frederick were quick to then peer over his shoulder, in order to read what was there._

" _Robin… She's definitely a tactical genius, and well liked..."_

" _Plus she happens to be a mystery – something which doesn't fare well for her-"_

" _Be quiet, Frederick, you're making this worse than it has to be… Oh! Look! That's something that we didn't know! Her birthday, it is-!"_

" _The first of January. Now give me that." A sudden hand appeared, and briskly closed the book before anyone else could read any more. "You have the cheek to ruin my entire strategy book, and then you take the roster?! Gods… I need this to help with strategies! How else do you think that I know who to pair up with who in battle?! Or which weapons would be best for someone to take into a fight!?"_

 _Frederick had his own ideas on what the book was for though… "Or you happened to be studying our various different weaknesses, ready to exploit them when you see fit. I have seen your way of behaving around people such as Lon'qu."_

 _Robin raised an eyebrow as the trio slowly separated, before shaking her head. "It seems as though fires aren't the only things which you are keen on stoking, Frederick..."_

* * *

"And… Oh! Oh! Maybe we can tell mother about that time the other week when I went with you to the market to buy some more books for me to read! That was fun, because I saw more wooden people there! Like… Um… The pegasus lady! Cordelia?… She was one of yours and mother's friends, right?!" Morgan eagerly began to scribble down more of what he had wrote, before he then yawned.

Despite his father's insistence, Morgan continued to write down more for Robin, as he wanted her to know as much as possible if she ever did return to his life, and he wanted it done that day. So what if she didn't return today, it was still to be a birthday gift for her.

Frederick reluctantly allowed Morgan to continue writing, helping him correct little mistakes which he made in his writing every so often. Surprisingly though, for a six year old, Morgan was very literate. His mistakes were more often than not forgetting to capitalise the first letter of a name, or missing out the odd piece of punctuation. One thing was definitely reminiscent of a child of his age though, and that was how messy his writing was.

It was almost midnight when the boy stopped writing, before holding the pieces of parchment up with a faint smile and half-closed eyes for Frederick to see. "Father… Can you, um… look after this for mother?..." Morgan refused to move from his seat until Frederick took the paper from him, and even then, his only movement was to go and hug him as he yawned some more.

"Right… I'll make sure that she gets it..." the knight quietly mumbled, the uncertainty of Robin ever returning still playing on his mind. The way in which his son had acted that night, writing the letter… It hurt him. He was doing everything in a manner similar to her. Robin _insisted_ on finishing things the day that she started them, not to mention she would work to the point that she was almost asleep.

Morgan then decided to finally take off Robin's coat, before grabbing at his father's free hand. "Can I stay with you tonight, father?… You look upset..."

"Morgan, I'm not-"

"Yes you _are!_ You are upset father! You're crying!"

"I am _not_ crying, Morgan! Now come on… You're tired."

"With you! I'm going with you!"

Even his insistence here was like her… But one thing was definite, Frederick hadn't even realised that tears had began to form in his _longing –_ no, _**desperation –**_ for his wife. "I… Fine. You can stay with me, but only for tonight."

Wiping away his tears, Frederick then let his son clamber up onto his shoulders to go to his room. He hadn't even left Morgan's bedroom by the time that he had heard light breathing coming from his son, light enough to indicate that he had fell into a gentle slumber. It was nice to see that he was finally sleeping, especially after hours and hours of talking about… _her…_ It was more than painful, despite feeling happy that he was capable of carrying out such conversations.

It wasn't long before the boy was lay down in his father's bed, tucked under layers of blankets due to the harsh winter attacking Ylisse. He looked so delicate huddled up like that… Just like Robin.

Robin, Robin, Robin. Everything about Morgan… Was Robin. It was turning the knight _insane._ Four years without her had felt so long _simply_ because of Morgan… "Is that why… I pushed him away so much?… Why he felt as though… I didn't love him?..."

Frederick lay down with a worried frown on the bed, before pulling Morgan closer to him, as the child was dithering away despite the layers of blankets covering him. "Morgan… I'm sorry. I am so sorry about everything… I promise that I will try to become a better father for you…" He had no other thing on his mind after that. He would do _anything_ for his son, and no more would he allow his duties to get before his family… Morgan needed him now more than ever, especially with his current curiosity about Robin. "And I will start… By taking a break from my work as a knight for a while…"

As much as he didn't want to admit it, he knew that a break was in order. On top of him needing to look after his son, people had been begging him to take some time off, as he barely ever decided to take a break unless he were forced to. Now was a better time than never, with it being winter and with Morgan being rather susceptible to the cold.

Moments later, two small arms went and wrapped around his arm, and then there was a quiet mumble from Morgan. "You need to sleep, father..."

"And so do you, Morgan..."

* * *

"And if you pack the snow into a ball like this..." The older Morgan grinned as he showed his younger self the compressed snow. "You can go and throw it at someone!"

Eagerly, the younger of the two then crouched down and copied the other's actions, before looking around for an unwilling victim. There were quite a few people nearby who he could easily enough target. There was Lucina, Owain and Cynthia playing about with toy weapons in the snow in one direction, and in the other was his father, talking to Lissa, Chrom and Sumia, alongside a woman who he didn't recognise, other than the fact that her hair colour seemed a familiar colour to Lucina's.

Then he made up his mind on as to who he would throw it at.

As soon as he had let go of the snow, he was quick to run over to Frederick and hide behind him laughing. "Got you! Hah!"

The face upon the older Morgan was priceless as he wiped the snow off his shoulder, before he frowned. The woman who he didn't know in the group burst out laughing at the face, before running over to him and trying to stop him from throwing the snowball in his hand at his younger self.

"Keep calm, Morgan… He is only six years old at the moment, remember?"

"Yes, but you're six too and you seem to be-" Suddenly, there was shouting from the other few children in the courtyard, and it ended up with the little Owain and Cynthia sat on the floor crying. "More… mature… Well, there goes my argument over you being more mature than me, if those two are now covered in snow..."

The young Morgan laughed as Frederick picked him up and let him sit on his shoulders, watching as the other three of his age were pulled apart by their parents, and as the person he knew as 'Marc' went and left with the mysterious woman. Even though he hated the cold and snow, he found it more than fun when he wasn't the victim.

It was more than easy for his father to pick up on that, before he shook his head and sighed as Morgan shivered quite a bit on his shoulders. "We're going inside now. I don't want you ill, okay? Besides… Now that I have the time, it would be nice to spend it together, don't you think, Morgan?"

The last part of what was said was quick to confuse Morgan. "Now that… you have time?… What do you mean, father?..." He clung to the man tightly then, awaiting an answer. He knew that Frederick _always_ put his job first when it came to how to spend time, so he was quite unsure.

"I have managed to request a break off my duties as a knight for a month, so that I can spend time with you, Morgan. If it weren't for me being so busy most of the time, we would be much closer… I cannot make up that time, but I can most certainly change my ways now. For you, of course. My son, who I love more than anything in the world..."

"But… what about mother?…"

"I love her just as much as you… But… she isn't here for me to spend time with also..."

* * *

Blank space.

Everything was just… blank. For what felt like an eternity, everything was simply just… nothing.

And it was lonely. Nobody to… hold onto. Nobody for comfort.

It most certainly didn't help that she was without any sort of physical form either. In a way, she was just like her surroundings. Nothing. She was simply just a collection of thoughts, emotions and memories.

"How… long has it been?… I have no sense of time… Is there even time here?… Is this place… even a place?..."

Frustration, longing and fear were the most overwhelming of the emotions which she could feel right there and then. "I… need to return… They just need to reach out… just a little more… Then maybe… I can..."

If she had a physical form, she would most definitely want to huddle up into a ball and cry, allowing her pale hair to cover her face as she wept. All that she wished for… was reality. Solid ground beneath her feet, sunlight warming her skin… And her family, there to comfort her in her times of need.

"Frederick… Morgan… I hope that they are okay without me… Whilst I am nothing… They are still where they belong…" Thinking about the two most important people in her life suddenly brought about a sudden burst of confidence that one day, she could return. "I wonder if they still think about me… My husband and my son… If they do, maybe that can be enough… I can't be nothing forever… Can I?"

* * *

 **Man, this took longer than I thought it would to write! So many discarded ideas for this chapter...**

 **I hope that this is okay... So please, review/favourite/follow!**


	3. Field of memories

**So, this chapter is a _bit_ short in comparison to usual, alongside only writing it a bit at a time, but... I have kept you all waiting for an update on this for long enough, I think. Besides, next chapter is going to have quite a bit happen, so stay tuned for that at some point!**

* * *

"Mother… I bet that you would be happy that I still go to visit father frequently… He seems so lonely without you. I've never seen him so down before… I get that it has been four years since you left us, so it's no wonder…" The brown haired person sighed, looking down at Robin's memorial stone. "You're missing me – as in younger me – growing up too…" There was then a sudden laugh from him as he began to tear up, thinking about what he had seen when he had finally met his younger self for the first time. "Both he and father are finally getting along, after all of this time… They both miss you so much! Just come back already!" He then suddenly sank to his knees, crying more than he was just seconds previously. "Mother..."

* * *

"So… You didn't like mother when you first met? Haha, I can imagine what you were like, father!" The young Morgan began to laugh, before attempting to do his best interpretation of Frederick. " _You are a bad lady so stay away from Chrom and Lissa!"_

"Now, I wasn't like _that,_ Morgan-"

A new voice was quick to cut off Frederick mid-sentence, laughing at Morgan's impression at the same time. "No, it was more like ' _I wish to trust you but because you don't remember anything but yours and Chrom's name, I shall deem you unworthy of trust.'_ Or… At least something along those lines. It _was_ nine years ago when we found her, after all... But hey, at least he began to trust her because she made him eat some bear meat." The voice belonged to Chrom, who at that time, happened to be walking past the father and son as they spoke together. "But you were rather close too, Morgan."

Morgan burst out laughing then, hearing Chrom's impersonation with the stupid voice that was put on alongside the idea of Frederick eating _bear_ , before noticing that his father seemed almost… upset with the interpretations, as he was looking away with a furrowed brow and a frown. Carefully, the boy took hold of his hand, hoping that Frederick wasn't annoyed. The reassuring squeeze moments later brought a grin to the boy's face, and he almost clung to him in joy.

"You need to stop acting like your mother… You act more and more like her each day..."

And how it made him long for her even more.

"Anyway… Morgan, I need to have a word with your father for a moment. Do you reckon that you can keep yourself distracted whilst we speak? I promise, I won't take long."

The boy looked up, before putting on a small frown. "But father promised… He promised to spend time with me… Let me stay with father! I want to listen too!"

It took quite a few minutes for the two men to persuade Morgan to do something else for a short while, and it was the closest thing to deja vu which they had ever experienced. It was just like the argument which had happened over Robin's choice to continue fighting so soon after Morgan's birth when the Valmese threat had began to arise…

At least this argument didn't end up with stones and tomes being threw at people though.

As Morgan sat down with a 'hmph' nearby, looking outside at the plants starting to grow seeming as winter was quickly transitioning to spring, Chrom was finally capable to speak with Frederick without any curious ears listening in. "It's about where we first met Robin… Hearing Morgan speak about back then reminded me of what I was told yesterday…"

"Must we speak about-"

"Yes… Strange things have been happening down there. Specifically things which had happened once we met with her. Villagers which were injured by the brigands which showed up have been going to clerics – Maribelle more than anyone due to her locality – to complain that their wounds from _nine years ago_ were reopening as if by magic. And on top of that… There have been people who live there speaking of strange dreams in which they see a woman with white hair crying for her home and her family… It can't be just a coincidence."

"It has to be. I… I have got my hopes up so many times before now that she could return, just for them to be dashed down. I'm not allowing that to happen again… For Morgan's sake, at the very least."

Unfortunately, after hearing his name being mentioned, the boy felt as though he had no other option _but_ to listen in to what he knew was a private conversation.

"Well… Me and Lissa alongside… Well..." Chrom was then quick to make a gesture towards Morgan before indicating that he was talking about the older Morgan, "We are going to investigate what is going on, or at least visit the area tomorrow. I was hoping that you would be willing to come along, for the odd chance that it could be a sign of Robin's imminent return… But if you are insistent on not believing it..."

"I wish to believe it, milord. I am _desperate_ for any hope to cling onto. But my son needs me. I promised to stay with him no matter what, and not to leave him alone."

"Well bring him with you! Surely he wouldn't want to be cooped up here for a long time, especially with it becoming warmer now. Me and Lissa are bringing Lucina and Owain, so maybe he could play with them for a while. Besides… You are looking as though you need to get outside the castle walls too, Frederick. I understand that you live here too, but… It doesn't mean that you should just stay here just to look after your son." Chrom then noticed from the corner of his eyes that Morgan was trying to listen in, and also that Frederick had a frown on his face alongside slightly widened eyes that made him look _anxious._ That wasn't an emotion which fit him at all _. "_ At the very least you should have a day out tomorrow, if you aren't willing to come with us. Don't you think so, Morgan? Your father needs to get outside for a day?"

Without thinking about the fact that he shouldn't have been listening in on the first place, and wasn't _meant_ to respond, he replied anyway. "Yeah!" And then he realised at the sight of Chrom's raised eyebrow. "Oh..."

* * *

"Wooden mother..." Morgan moved the small figure closer to another one upon a desk in a room which he was aware of being his mother's study for when she wanted to read or plan something out. It was a comfortable room for sure, with pale blue walls which were capable of reminding him of the comfort that he experienced in one of his very few remaining memories which he had of her. Other features included many blankets and pillows (he assumed that she fell asleep in there a lot from that), and bookcases filled to the brim with various different books, ranging from fictional novels, historical textbooks, and what he assumed were diaries. Frederick had let him read whatever books that he wanted, so long as the diaries were left untouched. He wondered why that was upon a daily basis, but he just assumed it would be something to do with the memories which they dug up for his father – be they bad or good.

It took him a few minutes to get the figures to where he wanted them positioned, before he put on a small smile. "There… Wooden mother is with wooden father… Now wooden father is happy… But… There's no wooden Morgan to be with mother and father… The one of older me went missing..."

From the doorway, his older self sighed as he held onto the missing figure which the boy was speaking about. Nobody knew what the consequences would be if the younger of them realised that he wasn't really who he said he was, so there was no option but to intervene. "He deserves to be with his mother and father… But this Morgan has to be on his own… He doesn't know where or when his parents are..." Upon whispering that, he clenched the hand holding the figure tightly, but not tight enough to break it.

Once he had finished dwelling on his thoughts, he began to hear a light sobbing coming from the room. Morgan didn't want to see the child upset, so he had to try and get him to calm down. "Hey there, Morgan… What's the matter?"

"H- Huh?… What are you doing here?..." The boy stood up, and pulled his mother's coat around him tightly.

"You're upset, I could hear you crying… What's the matter?" He placed a hand on the boy's shoulder, before giving him a reassuring smile. "You can tell me, right? You're like a little brother to me, so I don't like seeing you upset..."

"You… You knew my mother before she disappeared, didn't you?..."

"Yes, I did-"

"Do… You think that she wanted to leave me and father behind?… Or… Or not?..."

That question made the older of the two clench his fist then, before shaking his head frantically. "No… She didn't want to go. She was scared of dying… E- Every night leading up to her disappearing… She would cry… Cry for you, cry for your father, cry for everyone… She didn't want to go… But she didn't have a choice… If she didn't go, well..." The memories of the time in which he and all of the other Shepherds got pulled into his friends' future somehow, and having to watch all of his friends die, with an alternate version of him being at the hands of many of their deaths, began to play through his mind. "If she didn't go… Almost nobody would be here right now… _You_ wouldn't be here right now."

It was a relief for Morgan to know that his mother didn't want to leave him or Frederick alone, so it was enough for him to wipe away his tears and put on a faint smile. "That's good..." The boy's gaze then shifted towards the doorway, and his smile was quick to become a wide grin. "Father!"

* * *

Morgan was gazing around in curiosity at a field which he, his father, and a few other people were stood in, because of them explaining to him that this was the field which they had met his mother. "So… Where was she here? You said that you found her asleep… But there's no bed! Or chair! Or blankets, and you can't sleep without blankets!"

"Believe me, you can, Morgan. Your mother proved that to just about everyone!" Lissa laughed, ruffling the young Owain's hair before he went to have a play fight with Lucina. "She was right about… Here! Just lying in the grass!" Despite being a mother, Lissa couldn't help but act like a child as she bounded forward into a small patch of the field which was covered with daisies.

The boy looked up at his father for some sort of confirmation, and when he got a nod, he could only laugh and run to the same place that Lissa was stood. "So… If I did this, do I look like mother?!" Making sure that he had Robin's coat on, Morgan then lay down in the grass, closed his eyes, and made a loud snoring sound.

"Oh no, that's not like your mother! She'd be asleep dreaming about bandits, wolves, and bandits riding wolves!" Lissa was having fun remembering events which had happened in the past, and being able to laugh about it was a great relief from the stress which Owain caused her at times. "That or killing Chrom… But that's a story for another time."

Just seeing his son laughing and doing what he could to be like his mother whilst she was absent made Frederick want to laugh along, but at the same time… He didn't find it amusing in the slightest. His pain made the humour of the situation lose most meaning. He wished for that not to be the case, but unfortunately, it was.

"Mother..." He looked over at his son when he heard the small mumble, and could see a few tears streaming down his face. "I want my mother..." And then he sat up and began to cry even more. "L- Lucina, a- and Cynthia, and Owain, and all- all of my friends h- h- have their mothers, s- so why can't I have mine?!" When Morgan then began to rip up pieces of grass and throw them out of frustration, Frederick had to rush over to him and take hold of his arms to get him to stop.

"Don't do that, Morg-"

"B- But you don't get it father! I don't have a mother but everyone else does!"

Morgan was held close to his father in a hug then, as he tried to whisper some reassuring words down his ear. "Not everyone, Morgan… I understand how you feel, not having a mother – I lost mine when I was about your age. But… There's a chance that your mother can come back. We just have to be patient."

By that point, Owain and Lucina had come over to Morgan to see what was going on, and were kneeling down on the ground as they looked at him. "You know, I almost never get to see my mother! Cynthia is _always_ with her, so I'm always having to play with my father! But I find it fun!"

"Yeah!" Owain had now joined in the conversation. "The legendary hero Owain almost never sees his father. He's always looking around for candy to eat… The only way I can see my father is if mother makes him stay or if I hide candy in my room! And that's silly!" The two were trying to reassure Morgan, and thankfully, they had managed to make him calm down a bit. Frederick sighed in relief because of that, as he had noticed that he found Morgan's sudden mood changes harder to deal with than Robin's.

Slowly, the boy gave his father a small but apologetic look, before standing up and looking between his two friends and then towards a nearby tree. "Last one to the tree… Has to try and steal Owain's father's candy!"

The older Morgan finally decided to speak up then, and that was when he held out a hand to help Frederick up off the ground. "I'm quite the handful, aren't I? Hah… I wish I could remember being a child..." He then laughed, before poking Frederick's head. "Is that a grey hair that I can see?"

"No wonder my hair is turning grey prematurely… I have to deal with you and your younger self!"

"H- Hey, don't be mean, father!"


End file.
